The unshakable Chantae McMillan makes her debut as a Titan

It seems like nothing rattles Titan Chantae McMillan, not even Dwayne Johnson.

“I felt like he was just a regular guy. I just saw him as an athlete,” Chantae said casually, when asked about meeting The Rock himself on the second season of his show, The Titan Games. “He had been at the University of Miami as a football player, that’s how I saw him. I respect his wrestling career, and now his acting career, but I see him as an athlete and I respect his grind.”

Chantae is no stranger to the grind. She’s a former Heptathlon Olympian, a mom to a young son, and now, the reigning female Titan of the Central region.

Steve Dietl/NBC

The Titan Games premiered its second season on Monday, May 25 with a two-hour episode featuring the first two portions of the Central region’s competition. (You can learn more about the format of the show here.) We were introduced to Chantae as a challenger who first faced Alexis Balliet in three challenges. Winning two of those three challenges sent Chantae to Mount Olympus, facing down elite Titan Claressa Sheilds, the Undisputed Middleweight Boxing Champion.

Chantae ran her own race with blinders on. She never even realized she was so far ahead of Claressa that she could have sat down and taken a break. Not one to dial it down, Chantae repeated the Mount Olympus performance against the next challenger, Jamie Seeman.

That makes Chantae a 2X Mount Olympus Titan and the reigning female Titan of the Central region. We got to know this Titan a little better on a phone call regarding her one heck of a debut performance.

Why did you want to be on The Titan Games?

CM: I looked at it as another way to challenge myself athletically. I’m a track and field Olympian, but I love different challenges just to see what I’m capable of as an athlete.

Steve Dietl/NBC

Your first challenge (Launch Pad) was a loss to Alexis Balliet. Did that change your mindset or strategy?

CM: It went by so quick. So, so quick. It was crazy. I didn’t expect that. I’m pretty sure I lost by seconds, Looking back on it, if I had been able to adjust myself in the middle of the competition, a little quicker of a turn around, I would have been right there and might have won. But when it was over, I was definitely just in shock. Alright, this is The Titan Games. I need to get myself in gear and really prepare for the next challenge.

What was your first impression of Mount Olympus and the Titan Claressa Shields?

CM: We were able to do a walk-through (of Mount Olympus) before the competition. I was intimidated but also put at ease going through the walk-through. Understanding each obstacle that was on Mount Olympus, the objective, how I was going to get through it. I left the walk-through and went through the run visually a couple times in my head. I was trying not to think about my competition, just not to intimidate myself. Going into it, I was like, “Claressa Sheilds, she’s a boxer. She’s going to be in great shape endurance-wise and muscle-wise. She’s a boxer!”

I was worried about carrying the log up the ramp. But I was able to do that easy. Getting the draw bridge down, that took a lot out of me. I didn’t know if I should try a different way in the middle of the competition or if I should just stick to what I knew each time. That was probably my biggest challenge.

How did it feel to snap up the title of Titan right out of the gate?

CM: I’ll say I thought it was going to be a harder battle against Claressa, but I gave it my all. Looking back I’m like, “Okay, I could have maybe slowed down at one point and paced myself a little better.” But it was great, I killed it, and I know what I’m getting into next time.

Did the experience on Mount Olympus come into play when you faced Jamie?

CM: Yeah, for sure. I knew what I had to do once again and where my struggles might possibly happen. Then I was able to pace myself once I was able to get ahead.

You had some very sweet moments with your son, Otto. What did it mean to you to have him there?

CM: I hope he can look at this someday and hopefully have glimpses of this memory. He’s super young. I don’t know how his mind will work. But it was great to have him there and have him recognize me. My mom would say, “Where’s momma?” and he’d point to me. To see all these things I’m doing, I don’t know if he’ll remember it but he got to see it. He was amazing. He was a rockstar through the whole thing. He didn’t cry. He was always cheering and clapping when the audience was clapping for me. It was quite the opportunity for him and I’m happy he could be there.

How does it feel to open the season as the Titan?

CM: It feels good. With all that said, I look back and think how hard it was to get there and hold that title. That’s all I can say.

Chantae can’t rest easy just yet. She’ll be defending her Titan title once again as the Central region competition continues.